Amid supply chain disruptions and out of stocks at retail, opportunities exist for nimble food and beverage makers who are easy to work with, agreed supply chain experts during yesterday's Fancy Food Show session titled Solving the Supply Chain Crisis.
“The competitive advantage is ‘what can you do for me right now?’” said Jeff Grogg, founder of JPG Resources. “More brands are innovating towards simplicity and what they can deliver right now.”
Bob Burke, principal, Natural Products Consulting, echoed that saying: “The team was going through a 15-page sales deck and someone said ‘all you need is one page that says we’re in-stock and can ship right away.’”
Andrew Lynch, president of Zipline Logistics, which manages nationwide transportation to meet retail compliance standards, agreed saying that his company’s most successful clients are those who are partnering with retailers on the end goal of getting their products to the shelves.
“In a recent study, 80 percent of retailers believed that consumers would value in-stocks over [price] value,” said Lynch. With that in mind, retailers are more open than ever to changes such as resetting due dates or adjusting lead times, he said.
Lynch cited a recent IRI report that listed total in-stocks at 83 percent. “When we see a category in the 80 [percent range] it means that all brands in that category are in the 50 and 60 [percent ranges], and retailers are rotating them on the shelf,” he said. “We recently onboarded a beverage maker and they said, ‘I’m walking through Whole Foods and I’m seeing open shelf space. That’s going to be mine, and I’m going to fill that space.’”
The speakers acknowledged that many Fancy Food Show exhibitors are small, early-stage, and often disadvantaged when it comes to competing for resources as they’re not able to outbid larger competitors.
Burke related that these brands can gain a leg up by being easy to work with.
“You can’t control if you’re the biggest, but you can control if you’re easy to work with,” he said. “You can punch above your weight if you’re a great partner.”
Related: Craft Chocolate Offers Opportunity for Specialty Retailers; Partnering With Influencers: What Companies Should Know.